Three Faiths United

Members of Abrahamic Faiths come together at Dorset carol service for Israel-Palestine

Members of the three Abrahamic faiths came together
in an unusual event at Wimborne Minster.

Called The Promise of Advent: Carols for Justice in
Israel-Palestine, the service used updated words to traditional tunes,
reflecting the sad reality of Bethlehem today.

A Palestinian Christian refugee, an observant Jew
and a representative of Bournemouth Islamic Centre were among the readers.

Passages from the scriptures of all three faiths and
more modern readings gave the congregation food for thought.

A piece written by an Israeli woman who lost her
only daughter to a Palestinian suicide bomber showed solidarity with bereaved
mothers on both sides. Another by an Israeli soldier expressed shock at his
colleagues’ ill-treatment of Palestinian children.

Colin Brady, the Diocese’s Social Justice Programme manager said afterwards on social media, “‘Moving’ doesn’t quite have the power to describe this evening’s service at Wimborne Minster.

“To hear a former
British Consul General in Jerusalem read from the prophet Micah 'and he shall
be the one of peace'”, he continued, “and to hear the Kaddish sung
in Aramaic [the Jewish prayer for the dead sung in the native language of Christ] was to be exposed to something very powerful and prayerful.

“But I wasn't the only
one who was particularly moved to hear the reading of the story of the
Annunciation read from the Koran, followed by its translation.”

Stephen Dominy, the Christian Aid Co-ordinator for Dorset, said it was an emotional service which provoked “awe,
anger, solidarity and hope”.

The service – which took
place by kind permission of the rector Canon Vanessa Herrick – followed a day
of workshops for sixth formers at Queen Elizabeth’s School on many aspects of
the situation in Israel-Palestine.